Thirty years ago, Professor David Groves founded the Key Centre for Teaching and Research in Strategic Mineral Deposits in the Department of Geology at the University of Western Australia (UWA). The ‘Centre’ as it was better known, was the first of its kind in Australia. It operated until 2004 when succeeded by the Centre for Global Metallogeny (CGM). Over the weekend of 17th-18th November 2018, a 30-year reunion celebration of students and staff from the original Key Centre and successor CGM was held.